Tag Archives: Post Offense

The 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill provides an opportunity for post players to refine their skill by putting them into action on the floor. The focus of the 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill is around those players who have developed the basic post playing moves and technique, but need then to utilise these skills in a realistic game situation. One of the common problems found by players is the ability to be able to practice the skills they end up developing to improve their game. Players can invest a great deal of time improving their fundamental skills, but then fail at the next stage which is where they start to use these skills in competitive situations. The 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill looks to provide many repetition opportunities for a player in rapid succession.

The 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill starts with an offensive player in front of the basket with a ball.

4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill Diagram 1

Four defenders then set-up around the keyway at the elbow and low positions position on both sides of the key.

Two coaches (or offensive players) position themselves foul line extended on each side of the half court.

The 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill starts when the offensive player passes to one of the coaches and then has an option of looking to post up against either of the defensive players on the same side as where the pass was made.

In the diagram, the offensive player (Five) passes the ball to the left side of the court. The offensive player then chooses to post up against the defensive player in the low post.

The coach receiving the pass can either pass this back to Five (5) once a post-position has been established or skip the pass across the court to the other coach. When a skip pass is made the offensive player (Five) then has to cut to the other side of the keyway and again attempts to establish a target post-position.

No other defender can help in help defence. Only the defensive player who has been engaged by Five (5) moving into their area and posting up can play active or “live” defence. Once Five (5) receives a pass in the post the drill continues until either the offensive player scores or the defender secures possession (always in a 1 v 1 scenario).

The goal for the offensive player is to score. The target of the drill can be varied to make the outcome more challenging. For example, the offensive player might have to stay on offense until they score twice or make to scores in a row. This number can be increased so the offensive player spends longer within the drill and a certain type of conditioning is also added to the benefits of the 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill.

The aim of the 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill is for the offensive player to experience a number of possessions so they get to work specifically on their individualised skill set without having to wait long periods of time between possessions which happens in many 5 v 5 game situations.

Variations

If the offensive players are struggling to be able to create a scoring opportunity with the limited space. Then an option is for one of the defenders on each side to be removed so there is some additional space for the offensive player to work with. A bonus to this type of variation is the fact the defender will have to work a little harder in denying the offensive player the ball.

An option to make the dribble more challenging for the perimeter players is to add defenders to these positions if players are filling these spots. Defenders will not be able to double down onto the posit (initially), but can apply pressure to the pass going into the post. Passing into the post as most coaches acknowledge is often a poor area in a team’s offensive abilities.

The 4 Spot Gladiator Interior Drill is a good activity for helping post players become more confident and complete as a player in scoring around the basket. If run at pace the drill can provide a high volume of repetitions for a post player and improve the individuals performance quickly due to this challenging skill being rehearsed so often under close supervision of a coach.

The Bump and Move Big Man Drill looks to focus on interior targets working in a highly competitive situation from the Low Post. The drill will focus on the offensive player using a “Bump” to create offensive advantage in the post. The bump tends to be one of a range of offensive skills not often explicitly used due to its obvious peril of resulting in an offensive foul. This however, like all skills can be practiced and refined so players become comfortable and competent in making this a part of the individual offensive skill set. The Bump and Move Big Man Drill looks to also facilitate the opportunity for the offensive player to link the bump with an attacking move towards the basket from the low post for a high percentage scoring movement.

When using the Bump and Move Big Man Drill it is important from the outset to explain to the players that the use of the bump is only to create a momentary advantage and not to knock the defensive player to the ground or even shift their feet. The bump is about creating an advantage by rocking the defensive player’s centre of gravity from the balls of their feet, instead to their heels. This will force the defensive player to be unable to make swift movements of recovery in positioning which should be enough time for the offensive player with practice to exploit their advantage for the score.

Another effect of the bump on the defensive player is if contact is made in an upward motion, the defender will often stand upright to try and maintain balance and not fall over. This again will assist the offensive player in creating some advantage upon which solid scoring opportunity can be performed.

Bump and Move Big Man Drill Diagram 1

The Bump and Move Big Man Drill starts with a coach in the long corner with the ball.

An offensive (Circle Five) and defensive player (Triangle Five) start on the weak side short corner.

The Bump and Move Big Man Drill commences when the coach slaps the ball. The offensive player creates a lead for the ball and then flashes to the intended catching position.

The offensive player (Circle Five) is looking to catch at the furtherest, on the edge of the keyway. Anything further and this in really will provide too much time and room for the help defence to fill.

The defensive player can fill in behind on the lead or halve the offensive player in the low post.

To vary the type of defence employed later on the defender can be allowed to front the post. This is not however advised initially as this will void the opportunity to bump the player and develop the core skill of the drill.

Bump and Move Big Man Drill Diagram 2

Once the ball has been passed to the post player, Five (Circle) now has an opportunity to execute the bump and then attack the basket.

The Bump and Move Big Man Drill finishes once the offensive player scores of the defender secures possession. Discourage only “one shot” rules as this will discourage the offensive player from crashing the boards and continuing to play which is obviously a mindset desired in interior players.

It should be emphasised that the bump is about creating advantage, and not about making overly dramatic contact with the defensive player. Depending on the level of competition what is deemed as “reasonable contact” will vary. A coach should always be looking to define this for players to better educate them about the demands of the standard of competition.

When bumping the offensive player should look to not make contact with the middle of the chest of the defender, but rather one side of the player’s body to which the attacking move will also be made. This will result in the defender being off balance and in some cases open the driving lane to basket making the overall scoring opportunity a better prospect.

Variations

One option is to replace the coach with another offensive player. This will help players playing on the perimeter learn to deal with the needs of passing into a moving post target. Additionally a defender can also be added to the passer so there is again an additional challenge for the offensive players to deal with.

Building upon the two on two situation, another option is to make the Bump and Move Big Man Drill turn “live” on the pass into the post. This will allow the perimeter player to cut and relocate into space to build more complexity and options into the team’s offense.

The Bump and Move Big Man Drill is a great activity for practicing a highly effective post movement while still gaining some benefit from a one on one situation in the post where a player gets to refine their overall skill set.

The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill brings together a number of different post situations for both offensive and defensive players to experience. The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill focuses on a one on one scenario specific to the low post area of the keyway. This provides a very unique opportunity for both the offensive and defensive players to improve their technical skills with ample player movement and opportunity.

Playing defence against low post players can be very artificial within many drills seen around countless basketball courts. The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill looks to provide a more game realistic environment while players have an opportunity to practice multiple times in a very short period their defensive technique.

For offensive players playing within the post it is not unusual for them to spend countless hours rehearsing their primary and counter moves. The natural progression for these drills is for defence to be added and player work one on one. Often though drills are very static and controlled. The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill looks to expand player movement to reflect the three guard front often seen in many team offenses.

These perimeter players then have to practice passing into the post while the offensive and defensive players battle it out for position.

4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill Diagram 1

One (1), Two (2), or Three (3) can start with the ball. Pass between themselves looking to get the ball into Four (4). Perimeter players should be encouraged to use pass fakes, ball reversals and skip passes to create a good passing opportunity.

Four (4) can move from one low post to the other low post. Post defence must attempt to deflect all passes into Four (4).

Post defence should be based around team principles. The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill should be seen as a way of implementing these desired defending techniques into the teams overall strategy.

Rules

Initially to help focus on the defensive element of the drill the following rules can be implemented:

Four (4) cannot score, if ball is passed into Four (4), then Four (4) passes the ball out.

Drill goes for 30 seconds, or if defence gets 4 deflections.

Points of Emphasis

1. Always work ball side

2. Jump to the ball

3. Bump post on cut

4. Post looks to seal

5. Game pace.

Variation

The 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill can be varied to add some extra complexity to the situation. The first option is to introduce defenders matched up against the perimeter players. These defenders are to remain with the perimeter players, but are to be still active in defence during the one on one situation. The point of this variation is to add defensive pressure to passing into the post.

To help keep the play as realistic as possible an option is to allow the perimeter players while being defended to use one dribble to improve their position and passing angle. Any more dribbles however and the offensive players will be able to breakdown the core focus of the 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill too much.

Another variation to consider in changing the 4 v 1 Low Post Defence Drill is that an additional offensive player can be added to the interior. This can be achieved in a few different ways. The first is to have both players in the low post positions. These players can screen and move but must remain below the double block.

The second option is to allow the second interior player to only play in the high post. They are allowed to move but must remain above the double block.

Finally, the third option is to allow both interior players free movement anywhere around the keyway. All three of these options around adding the additional offensive player should provide good opportunities to practice High/Low offense options.